Containment Device And Method Of Use

ABSTRACT

A flexible, portable, storable, tamper-evident, containment device comprising a substrate, a transparent laminate, and a liner is used to identify, preserve, and protect medications, specimens, samples, small parts, and other objects. The laminate is bound or fixed to a side of the substrate and extends beyond the substrate. The portion of the laminate that extends beyond the substrate is removably secured to a liner with an adhesive that remains on the laminate when the liner is removed. After the liner is removed, the laminate is folded over the substrate and secured to the substrate by the adhesive that remains on the laminate.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 61/491,820, filed May 31, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The field of the invention is portable, secure, tamper-evident, laminated containment devices for medication, pills, capsules, crime scene evidence, samples, specimens, small parts, jewelry, and other objects that need to be preserved for use in the future.

BACKGROUND

It is often necessary for crime scene evidence, such as bullets, casings, fibers, fragments, and other objects, to be removed from a crime scene and preserved and protected so that the evidence will not be contaminated by environmental substances that were not part of the crime scene. Such evidence must be preserved and protected from unrelated materials and contaminants such as DNA, dust, pollen, fibers, and trace chemicals.

Similarly, when inspections of industrial or workplace areas or equipment require samples or specimens of materials used in, or produced as a result of, industrial or workplace processes, it is necessary to protect and preserve the samples collected at the location of the process so that the specimens or samples may later be identified, tested, and analyzed without exposing them to contamination from outside, unrelated sources.

It is also necessary to provide pills, capsules, or other medications to persons for use at a later time. For example, a child may need to take a medication at school, or a child may be given medication by a school nurse or doctor for use a later time. Sometimes, it is also necessary for a parent to provide a medication for a child to take at school or during some other event away from home, in which case it is desirable to provide the medication to supervisors, teachers, or school nurses in a tamper evident package or containment device with the physician information and instructions for taking the medication on the containment device.

When adults must travel or be away from sources of medication for a period of time, it is also desirable to have a containment device to store, preserve, and protect the medication, not only from contamination, but also from becoming lost in a pocket, purse, or other place where the medication may be stored during travel or other activities.

Although blister packs are used for some kinds of pills and capsules, the blister packs frequently contain large numbers for pills or medications that need not be transported by the user who only needs to ingest the medication at certain times or at long intervals. Moreover, such blister packs, especially factory-sealed blister packs, do not allow special or individualized instructions (for individual use of medication, for example) to be written on the blister pack, nor do they allow for identification information to be placed or written upon the blister pack.

Sometimes it is necessary to carry small parts when traveling, or simply necessary to prevent small parts from getting lost before use. For example, small screws, transistors, bolts, nuts, pins, jewelry, and other similar parts or objects may easily become lost if the user does not have an appropriate container to store them and keep them from being mislaid or lost. Some such parts must also be identified and/or segregated when stored, as, for example, when several sizes of screws, pins, nuts, jewelry, and other objects must be kept for future use.

It is desirable to have a lightweight, portable, laminated containment device to identify, save, protect, and preserve evidence, specimens, and samples. It is also desirable to have a light, portable lamination device in which pills and capsules may be placed for future use and to have a portable lamination device to collect, save, and identify small parts.

In each situation, a method of identifying the parts, pills, other objects should be part of the device. The lamination device should be made in various sizes for the containment of various sizes of objects, should be lightweight and have a relatively compact, flexible shape for storage prior to use. Moreover, the containment device should be capable of use without sealing equipment, tools, or other equipment, and should be a single construction that does not have separate parts that might become separated and difficult to locate when needed.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

A flexible, portable, storable containment device comprising a substrate, a transparent laminate, and a liner is used to identify, preserve, and protect medications, specimens, samples, small parts, and other objects. The substrate contains a hole or opening that allows the object being stored and preserved to be seen through the transparent laminating material. The device may be made of light weight, flexible material for easy transportation and storage. Alternative embodiments of the containment device may have a rigid substrate to assist in the protection and identification of the object that is being preserved and protected, or simply saved for future use. The containment device is a single, connected, ready-to-use, tamper-evident structure that does not require portions of the device to be stored separately.

The laminate is bound or fixed to a side of the substrate, but also extends beyond the substrate. The portion of the laminate that extends beyond the substrate is removably secured to a liner with an adhesive, such as a patterned adhesive, that remains on the laminate when the liner is removed. The substrate forms a hole or window such that the object being preserved and protected may be seen after lamination. The removable liner may contain instructions in the method of use of the containment device. The substrate forms a location for identification of, and information about, the object in the containment device. The containment device is easily storable and mailable and is tamper-evident both as to the item stored and the information that may be placed on the containment device.

The method of use of the containment device requires no equipment, tools, or separate parts that might become separated and difficult to locate when needed. When a sample, pill, specimen, or other object is acquired or ready for identification, storage, and containment, the identification or instructions relating to the sample, pill, or object may be written on the substrate. The liner is removed, and the laminate is folded over the substrate and secured to the substrate by the patterned or other adhesive that remains on the laminate when the liner is removed. The transparent laminate, so folded, is secured to the substrate, covers the identification, and preserves the object contained therein, as well as the identification or instructions for the object. The window allows the contained object to be seen while contained. The lamination may be removed or broken when the object contained therein is needed for later use, consumption, testing, inspection, or analysis. If the lamination is accidentally broken, or otherwise improperly damaged, it will be evident that the integrity of the containment device has been violated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a side of a containment device showing a substrate and a liner attached to a transparent laminate;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an opposite side of the containment device showing the substrate and liner through the transparent laminate;

FIG. 3 is a view of the containment device taken along view line A-A of FIG. 2 showing the substrate, laminate, and liner;

FIG. 4 shows the containment device of FIG. 3 with the liner removed; and

FIG. 5 shows the containment device of FIG. 3 with the laminate folded over the containment device in a position such that it may contain an object.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows a first side of a containment device 10. FIG. 2 shows a second, opposite side of the containment device 10. The containment device 10 comprises a substrate 1, a laminate 2, and a liner 3. As shown in FIG. 1, the liner 3 and the substrate 1 are separated by a space 6. The laminate 2 is made of transparent material such as polypropylene or some other suitable transparent material. The substrate 1 has a first side 1A and an opposite second side 1B and forms an opening 5, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 1 shows the liner 3 and the first side 1A of the substrate 1. The liner 3 is adhesively secured to the transparent laminate 2 and to the second side 1B of the substrate 1, as shown in FIG. 2. The transparent laminate 2 extends the length of the substrate 1, the liner 3, and the space 6 between them, and as noted, is attached to the side 1B of the substrate as well as to the liner 3. The relative positions of the substrate 1, the laminate 2, and the liner 3 are also shown in FIG. 3, which shows the containment device 10 in its configuration before it is employed to secure an object.

The laminate 2 is attached to the substrate 1 by an adhesive such as acrylic adhesive, or some other suitable adhesive. The liner 3 is attached to the transparent laminate 2 by the same adhesive; however, the liner 3 is made of paper with a silicone coating, or some other suitable material such that it does not permanently adhere to the laminate 2, but, instead, may be removed from the laminate 2 via a tab 4, which is shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3. It is desirable to use a patterned adhesive on the laminate 2.

When the liner 3 is removed from the laminate 2, the adhesive, or a sufficient amount of the adhesive, remains on the laminate 2, so that the laminate 2 may be attached to the first side 1A of the substrate 1 as shown in FIG. 5.

The substrate 1 may be made of heavy paper, cardboard, plastic, or some other suitable substance that maintains the desired amount of rigidity when a sample, object, pill, or specimen is contained in the containment device 10. The substrate 1, of course, may be made in various thicknesses, depending on the type of object to be placed in the containment device 10 and the manner in which the containment device 10 will be stored, handled, mailed, or otherwise transported.

In use the containment device 10 is stored in the configuration shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3. Before an object is placed in the containment device 10, the object may be identified by writing (or securing an identifying tag) in the space 7 on side 1A of the substrate 1. (See FIG. 1) If medication is to be placed the device 10, instructions for the use of the medication may be placed in space 7. Once any desired identifying information or instructions are placed in space 7 the tab 4 of the liner 3 is pulled to remove the liner 3 from the laminate 2. The containment device 10, with the liner 3 removed is shown in FIG. 4. The medication, pill, capsule, specimen, sample, small part, or other object to be preserved is then placed in the opening 5 from side 1A of the substrate 1 so that the object rests on the laminate 2, which is already secured to the side 1B of the substrate 1, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The laminate 2, still containing adhesive, is then folded around the substrate 1 until it comes into contact with and is adhesively secured to the first side 1A of the substrate 1 in the configuration shown in FIG. 5. In some embodiments, the portions of the laminate 2 that cover the opening 5 when at the folded configuration of FIG. 5 may be void of adhesive, such that the object in the opening 5 is not exposed to the adhesive.

Since there is adhesive on the laminate 2 after the liner 3 is removed, the laminate 2 is adhesively secured to the first side 1A of the substrate 1 when it comes in contact with the first side 1A of the substrate 1. In the configuration shown in FIG. 5, the medication, pill, capsule, specimen, sample, small part, or other object is secured in the opening 5 between the laminate 2 on the first side 1A of the substrate 1 and the laminate 2 on the second opposite side 1B of the substrate 1. After the object is secured in the containment device 10, it may be moved, transported, stored, or otherwise handled until the object is ready for use, testing, analysis, or consumption in the case of a pill or capsule.

When the object is to be removed from the containment device 10, the laminate 2 covering the opening 5 may be broken and the object removed from the opening 5 in the substrate 1 of the containment device 10. Alternatively, the substrate 1 may be torn or cut to expose the object so that it may be removed from the containment device 10.

As noted above, the first side 1A of the substrate 1 of the containment device 10 may be written or printed upon to identify the object contained in the containment device 10 and to provide other information containing its original location, the date collected, instructions for taking medication, or other information for future use when the object is removed from the containment device 10. Such information written or printed on the first side of the substrate 1 will be covered and protected by the laminate 2 when it is folded over and secured to the first side 1A of the substrate 1 as shown in FIG. 5.

The liner 3 may contain instructions for the use of the containment device 10, as shown in FIG. 1. These instructions may be placed on the liner 3. When the liner 3 is removed via tab 4, these instructions will be removed with the liner 3.

Many different arrangements of the various components depicted, as well as components not shown, are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Embodiments of the present invention have been described with the intent to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art that do not depart from its scope. A skilled artisan may develop alternative means of implementing the aforementioned improvements without departing from the scope of the present invention. It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations and are contemplated within the scope of the claims. The specific configurations and contours set forth in the accompanying drawings are illustrative and not limiting. 

1. A containment device, comprising: (a) a substrate forming an opening; (b) a laminate having a first side containing adhesive and being secured to the substrate by the adhesive such that a portion of the laminate covers the opening on a first side of the substrate, the laminate further having an extension not initially secured to the substrate; and (c) a liner removably attached to the extension by adhesive, removal of the liner leaving at least a portion of the adhesive on the extension; wherein the extension is foldable about the substrate such that a portion of the extension covers the opening on a second side of the substrate after the liner is removed to enclose an object between the laminate and the extension in the opening.
 2. The containment device of claim 1, wherein the liner has a tab for removing the liner from the extension.
 3. The containment device of claim 1, wherein: the portion of the laminate covering the opening on the first side of the substrate is void of adhesive; and the portion of the extension covering the opening on the second side of the substrate is void of adhesive.
 4. The containment device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first side of the substrate and the laminate secured to the first side of the substrate is configured to receive ink.
 5. The containment device of claim 1, wherein the substrate includes at least one material selected from the group consisting of heavy paper, cardboard, and plastic.
 6. The containment device of claim 1, wherein the laminate has a generally rectangular perimeter.
 7. A containment device, comprising: (a) a liner; (b) a substrate defining and completely surrounding an opening, the substrate having opposed first and second sides for accessing the opening; and (c) a laminate having a first side containing adhesive, a first portion of the laminate first side being secured to the substrate by the adhesive such that the laminate covers the opening at the substrate first side, a second portion of the laminate first side initially being removably coupled to the liner, removal of the liner from the laminate first side leaving at least a portion of the adhesive on the second portion of the laminate first side, the second portion of the laminate first side being foldable about the substrate such that the laminate covers the opening at the substrate second side after the liner is removed to enclose an object in the opening between the first portion of the laminate first side and the second portion of the laminate first side.
 8. The containment device of claim 7, wherein at least one area of the first portion of the laminate first side and at least one area of the second portion of the laminate first side are void of adhesive, such that the object is not exposed to adhesive when enclosed in the opening between the first portion of the laminate first side and the second portion of the laminate first side.
 9. The containment device of claim 7, wherein instructions for use are printed on the liner.
 10. The containment device of claim 7, wherein the laminate is transparent.
 11. A method of protecting an object, comprising: (a) possessing a containment device having: (i) a liner; (ii) a substrate defining and completely surrounding an opening, the substrate having opposed first and second sides for accessing the opening; and (iii) a laminate having a first side containing adhesive, a first portion of the laminate first side being secured to the substrate by the adhesive such that the laminate covers the opening at the substrate first side, a second portion of the laminate first side initially being removably coupled to the liner, removal of the liner from the laminate first side leaving at least a portion of the adhesive on the second portion of the laminate first side, the second portion of the laminate first side being foldable about the substrate such that the laminate covers the opening at the substrate second side after the liner is removed to enclose the object in the opening between the first portion of the laminate first side and the second portion of the laminate first side; (b) placing the object against the laminate first side through the substrate opening; (c) removing the liner from the second portion of the laminate first side; (d) folding the second portion of the laminate first side around the substrate; and (e) securing the second portion of the laminate first side to the substrate via the adhesive remaining on the second portion of the laminate first side to enclose the object in the opening between the first portion of the laminate first side and the second portion of the laminate first side.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising writing on the substrate second side prior to securing the second portion of the laminate first side to the substrate.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the object is one of a pill, capsule, or medication.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the object is one of a sample, small part, evidence, or specimen. 